


A Tea Time Truce

by watanukitty



Series: Drinks with Destiny [1]
Category: Supernatural, Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle, xxxHoLic
Genre: Crossover, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-11
Updated: 2015-05-11
Packaged: 2018-03-30 00:32:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3916489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/watanukitty/pseuds/watanukitty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clow Reed fucked up. Death is not amused.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Tea Time Truce

**Author's Note:**

> originally posted on tumblr.

Chinatown in San Francisco was blazing with fiery red and gold lanterns, music, and the cacophony of people chatting, locals and tourists alike. The Autumn Moon Festival was in full swing, if the level of activity was anything to go by. He really couldn't have come at a better time.

But the tea house he chose to sit in, though, was a much needed contrast: it's a quaint little place--quiet, dimly lit, and most importantly, served good food. 

Yuuko would have liked it here.

Clow forcibly pushed the thought away. Troublesome things, thoughts; because of that one single fleeting wish he now has a full-blown catastrophe of multidimensional proportions in his hands, lives of children yet to be born that are sure be ruined on his conscience, and worse of all of he hurt _her_ , the one person who he wants to spare the burden of it all.

He downed his second cup of tea and scalded his tongue in the process. It hurt, but it hurt to think of Yuuko--of what he did to Yuuko--more.

"Do my infinitely ancient eyes deceive me? Why, it's none other than Clow Reed himself."

Clow turned to the voice, the sound of eons long gone, the shrill that drowns the sound of wars and battles, the hush over graves, the ever-present looming boom and the eternal, eternal quiet, and managed a small, polite smile. 

Death did not smile back, and instead stared-- _glared_ at him with a pair of dark, endless eyes, eyes that saw beyond what Clow might have seen or have yet to see.

"And just what," Death began, sitting on the chair opposite Clow, "brings the world's most powerful sorcerer to this side of the multiverse?"

Clow remained silent, and ordered another pot of tea--black--and two plates of dumplings. Only when the food arrived did he voice his answer.

"Just merely thinking."

"Oh?" Death said, sipping his drink and picking a dumpling with his chopsticks. "Is that what you call it these days? Dangerous activity, that." 

If he didn't have a reputation to uphold, Clow would have cringed.

Death, however, knew that he hit a nerve, as any unfathomably endless Being would, and smirked.

"Tell me, did she kick you out?" 

Clow knew that Death knew the answer to that, but indulged him nonetheless. "She set barriers and wormholes around her shop. Sends me to a different place and time every time I even as much as attempt to cross her threshold."

The response earned him a chuckle. "I always did like that girl. Such a sly one. Shame that I won't be able to share her company any time soon." Death said, and punctuated the jab with a pointed look.

"It was an accident," Clow tried explain, his voice small.

"Of course, of course," sighed Death, leaning back into his seat, his hands coming to rest on his cane. "Showed us all that no one is perfect, not even you, my boy. You never did saw that one coming, no?"

"No," Clow acquiesced, his eyes landing on the dark brown liquid in his cup. He knew she was getting weaker and weaker as the months passed, knew that she wouldn't last long. He thought he would be able to prepare, ready himself, say goodbye. 

He thought wrong.

It was one of the few things that escaped his Sight, as Death himself did. If Clow knew he would be meeting the Horseman today, he would have steeled himself for this conversation.

But alas, he was too weak, ironic as that sounds, too hurt, too guilty to do much of anything.

"Let's say that your Sight did allow you the forewarning of that moment," Death drawled, "you would have still made that wish."

The images of Yuuko that flashed before Clow's eyes--so still, so pale, and so very cold--made him pause for breath.

"Yes," was all he said.

"Pity," Death tutted through thin, pursed lips, and brandished what remained of his tea. "You of all people should know that I hate changes in my schedule, especially one as important as her."

"I am aware," Clow said.

"I went to welcome her myself too," Death added, a single eyebrow raised towards to what a normal person would say as his receding hairline. The lines and creases on his gaunt face are what he chose to wear for this particular world, and Clow knows that he changes his form to whatever suits his fancy. Outward appearances for Death are never constant--all that remains the same is that he's everywhere, watching, waiting.

Death tutted again, and began smoothing the lines of his dark suit. "What an inconvenience you've caused," he said. "It's one thing to have the dead revived many times over in this world, but that's barely a beep in my radar. But a person of her status and magnitude? Dear me..." he trailed off. "I trust that you are to fix the mess you made?"

"I'm already making plans," Clow responded, watching as the elderly man that Death uses as his disguise stand up and push his seat back into place.

"Good," Death nodded. "Many lives will be lost. But ah, I only come to collect, don't I?" he mused with a rueful laugh.

"I'll see when I see you, Clow Reed," Death said, inclining his head. He turned to walk out of the tea house, completely ignored by everyone, and stopped to give Clow one last glance over his shoulder.

"And do bring back some of those mooncakes for her. She might just start to consider even talking to you."

He was gone as suddenly as he appeared, with the shifting of the air in the room entirely unnoticed. The only evidence he had been there was the plate and empty tea cup across the table from Clow.

Clow regarded the empty space for a moment and allowed himself a real smile. He got a stern talking to, and he would be a fool not to heed it. He was already foolish over so many things.

He paid his bill, left the table, and went in search for mooncakes.

**Author's Note:**

> Soooo I think there's only one Death in the whole multiverse, and he is irked that Clow seriously delayed his planned drinking binge with Yuuko. Ugh, Clow, seriously?


End file.
